Finland, a first-rate place in which to be a mother, has registered the lowest number of newborns in nearly 150 years. The birth rate has been falling steadily since the start of the decade, and there’s little to suggest a reversal in the trend.
For Heidi Schauman, the statistics are “frightening.”

“They show how fast our society is changing, and we don’t have solutions ready to stop the development,” the Aktia Bank chief economist said in a telephone interview in Helsinki. “We have a large public sector and the system needs taxpayers in the future.”

Here’s a pretty chart.

The government has been working with employers and trade unions to boost gender equality by making parental leave more flexible and the benefits system simpler. The reforms are expected to come into force in 2019.

Because “gender equality” isn’t what got you here in the first place. Genius. There was a huge birth boom after World War Two (which we also witnessed in the States) then births tapered off in the 1970s. Which, at least in the States, was when radical feminism started to take hold. Again, in the States.

Schauman believes that won’t be enough.

“The discussion has revolved around gender equality and the employment of women, with the issue of natality sent to the background,” she said. What Finland really needs is a political program that treasures the family and increases the value of parenthood, the economist argued.

So maybe less moms at work, more moms at home? Maybe less societal pressure for women to work in offices, factories or wherever, and more acceptance of women who want to stay at home and raise children. Seems like a radical idea, no? Especially if good, strong men rose to the occasion and supported them.

Finland is a country where social programs flourish. Or cause destruction, depending on how you read the chart up above. The government even sends expecting mothers care packages with baby supplies. Free Elmos.

But free stuff isn’t making women want babies. Woman are busy pursuing careers, turning forty, following all the good little feminist rules. And men along side them. Now an entire generation is aging, and there aren’t enough tax payers being born to support the older generation.

The problem is clear: not enough children. Solving the problem isn’t as clear. You cannot just tell a generation to start falling in love, getting married, and having tax-paying offspring. As in America (which also has a falling birth rate) societal issues are much harder to solve. But perhaps a good place to start is to stop shaming women who want to stay at home and raise children. Start encouraging men to be ambitious, hard-working family providers. You know, bring back some traditional gender roles. Embrace gender differences. Don’t run from them or try to make men and women the exact same. Yeah?